Our top 10 articles of 2024
Cooking oil? Really?
The ASBMB Today website posted more than 400 original articles in 2024. These news stories and essays were written by our volunteer contributors and careers columnists, by science writer Marissa Locke Rottinghaus and other ASBMB staff, by contractors, by society members and by other interested scientists. They wrote about cutting-edge research and the trials and triumphs of making a life in and around the lab.
Of all those, the number one story of 2024 was about — cooking oil. To be specific, it was a news article about an abstract presented at the 2024 ASBMB annual meeting on a study linking long-term consumption of reused deep-fried oil with increased neurodegeneration. It was written by Nancy D. Lamontagne, a contractor who has written ASBMB annual meeting press releases for several years.
It’s always our goal that the articles in ASBMB Today will provide food for thought and fodder for conversation.
Our number two article, by former ASBMB policy analyst Dulce Hiraz Gomez, undoubtedly inspired both; it recounted the details of an NIH report on re-envisioning postdoc training, everything from increased pay to supporting diverse perspectives.
In the third and fourth spots were announcements of our 2024 ASBMB fellows and 2025 award winners — because don’t we all like to know who the rock stars are? Both were the work of staff writer Locke Rottinghaus.
Personal essays are the heart of ASBMB Today, and the number five article of 2024 was an essay titled “Mental illness after a Ph.D.” written by Reid Blanchett, a member of the ASBMB Maximizing Access Committee, for our January issue focused on trauma and recovery.
And rounding out the top 10:
6. A ‘cozy’ California meeting on lipids by Marissa Locke Rottinghaus — An interview with the co-chairs of the 2025 Deuel Conference on Lipids.
7. Nobel for ‘breakthrough in biochemistry’ by Marissa Locke Rottinghaus — Three scientists receive the chemistry prize for computational protein design and structure prediction.
8. Announcing the winners of the Molecular Motifs bioart competition by ASBMB Today Staff — Twelve works of art were selected from 37 entries.
9. The visa voyage by Marissa Locke Rottinghaus — International scientists fight red tape and regulations to train and work in the U.S.
10. Science journalism internships for early career scientists by career columnist Inayah Entzminger — A career option for those who love science, but are ready to leave the bench.
On this list, we have ASBMB news, science news, policy news, a personal essay, a meeting, careers — a little bit of everything. I hope that means you’re enjoying the variety we serve up on the ASBMB Today website. We have lots more planned for 2025.
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